When Does the New Year Come?

Over a quarter of the Earth's population celebrates the Chinese or Lunar New Year. It falls on a different date each year, between January 21 and February 20. For Georgia, Jerusalem, Russia, Macedonia and Serbia, which still use the Julian Calendar, the official New Year is on 14 January. In accordance to the Coptic Orthodox Church, New Year in Ethiopia is celebrated on 11 or 12 September. The Iranian New Year is on the day of the vernal equinox marking the beginning of the spring. This date falls on 20 or 21 of March. The Islamic New Year occurs on 1 Muharram. Since the Islamic calendar is lunar, the date constantly migrates throughout the seasons and moves from year to year compared to the Gregorian calendar.